The organ
Four manuals in a medieval stone volume.
Chris06 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Chris06 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Public domain · Karlis Ustups — CC BY-SA 4.0
The largest medieval church in the Baltic states, with an organ that was once the world's biggest: Riga Cathedral, the Dome, was begun in 1211 by Bishop Albert, the city's founder, and extended over centuries until Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque met in one building — and its floor now lies two metres below the street, because the city rose around it over eight hundred years. Its organ (1884) was the largest in the world on the day it was built: 6,718 pipes and four manuals, and it is still played at regular concerts — hearing it in this stone volume is unlike any recording, and it is the main reason to visit the cathedral. Dome Square before it is the old town's widest: cafés, Art Nouveau buildings and a Christmas market in December, with lanes running off to the Three Brothers and Riga Castle. The arcaded cloister inside the complex is the quietest corner in the city.
Four manuals in a medieval stone volume.
The old friary — Riga's quietest corner.
Herdera laukums 6, Riga
The Three BrothersThree joined houses that condense five centuries of domestic architecture: the T2 minutes walk4.5
Līvu SquareAn open square in the heart of Riga's old town, ringed by cafés and restaurants 3 minutes walk4.5
Museum of the Occupation of LatviaA black box on a square in the heart of Riga: the museum occupies a building rai3 minutes walk4.5
House of the BlackheadsLatvia's most famous facade — and only thirty years old: the House of the Blackh3 minutes walk4.7
Riga CastleThe knights' castle that became the President's palace: the Livonian Order built4 minutes walk4.3Because the city's level rose around it over the centuries through accumulated rubble, fill and repeated paving — so the cathedral stayed at its 1211 level while the street climbed two metres.